ACHA 09: Building the Future of ACHD Now

Thank you to everyone who joined us April 24-26, 2009 at the Boston Renaissance Waterfront Marriott in Boston, MA.

The 24th-26th of April marked ACHA’s first-ever Research Symposium paired with a Medical Professionals conference in ACHA 09: Building the Future of ACHD Now, in Boston, MA. The conference drew over 150 participants from over 35 states, and the weather could not have been more accommodating. Attending medical professionals brought skill, talent, and experience to the sessions, creating a stimulating environment and in-depth discussion of the CHD clinic and practice. A number of patient and family members were also present, attending a Leadership Summit on Saturday, April 25th. Problems and current issues in the ACHD field were identified and tackled by ACHA’s professional membership during three intersecting conference tracks: the Research Symposium, the Professionals Conference, and the Vision 2020 Forum. For many of the attendees, the conversation did not end with the sessions, but continued on in personal conversation outside of the conference.

Over the weekend, attendees spent time addressing the future of the ACHD field, including both clinical diagnoses in topics such as Hep-C and Cardiac Cirrhosis, Managing Atrial Dysrhythmias and New CHD diagnosis in Adults as well as in-depth discussions on Quality Metrics for CHD centers and mitigating Sudden Cardiac Death in the clinical setting. The sessions were dynamic, encouraging interactive discussion that engaged all participants in creating a system of CHD care that provides quality and up-to-date care for every adult living with CHD. The evaluations could not have been more positive, with many participants particularly impacted by Sunday’s Forum.

Sunday morning's forum kicked off the Vision 2020 (V2020) Initiative, in an open discussion designed to accelerate the development of adult congenital heart care in the United States. Four working groups engaged with the attendees to discuss the established goals of ACHD care: that it is high quality, age-appropriate, researched-based, coordinated and integrated, and available in all regions. The four working groups: Regionalization; Site Certification; Workforce Development; and Business Development will continue to develop an approach to meet the goal of a smooth, effective system of care. If you are interested in participating in the V2020 initiative, and want to learn more, link here.

And, the sessions were just the beginning! ACHA 09 also featured an amazing set of off-sit sessions hosted on Friday at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital, where faculty used the equipment to delve into specific case complications. On Saturday, an evening extravaganza included Dr. Mike Landzberg’s performance as a 6’4” frog—complete with furry-mask and green tights. It was follow-up with no less amazing performances by members of the ACHA board and medical advisory board and an outstanding group from Children’s Hospital in Columbus, OH who wrote a song about CHD to accompany their choreographed dance! To see the incriminating video, click here.

This conference was successful in priming the ACHA professional community to meet new horizons in ACHD care, and ACHA looks forward to working more in the V2020 initiative to improve and prolong the lives of CHDers everywhere!

Conference Presentations

FRIDAY

Research Symposium I

Sudden Cardiac Death and Malignant Arrhythmias: The Scope of the Problem in ACHD (James Perry, MD): Download PDF